Cool Baby Clothes: My Reward

Stuck in the backseat of a car with my parents, Crockett (panting over my shoulder the entire time) and a 2 year old (who does not like to nap in a carseat) for 12 hours.

Not your idea of a reward? Believe it or not I was giddy about this trip up to our lake cottage on one of the finger lakes of upstate New York. Well, I could have skipped the long drive up, but it is well worth it to be able to spend 3 whole weeks at my favorite place on earth.

A few years ago I decided to reward myself. The cake business is very seasonal, which means that I might work 60 hours a week for a few weeks in a row, and then I usually get a nice 20 hour week break. It's actually perfect for me since it never gets boring and although I might feel exhausted and overwhelmed one month, I usually have a month close ahead with a bit of a break to look forward to. Spring and early Summer are always quite busy with wedding cakes, so when April rolls in and I begin to think about the stress that lies ahead, all I have to do is imagine a cool, breezy afternoon, rocking on the porch overlooking Seneca lake. And knowing that I will be there in August is how I get through June!

I now take off most of August in order to be able to spend a nice long time in Glenora with my family. Isabelle probably had no memory of this special place she's visited twice before, but it didn't keep her from yelling "the lake! the lake! the lake!" over and over on the car ride up. Thanks to her Daddy for reminding her every day that week before that we were going to a place even cooler than the beach.

Isabelle was a born lake girl, and she has been a happy, smiley girl the entire stay so far. There is a new place to explore here every day: woods to walk through, a shore of interesting rocks to play with, and a cool (sometimes very cold) lake to splash in. An average of 75 degrees in the daytime and cooler nights make for wonderful sleeping--a good thing for everyone!

Lucky for Izzy, here she has lots of time to be with her beloved grandparents. And it's a huge bonus for them to have her around 24-7!

Here is the cute pair playing together exactly 1 year ago. Same red Walmart shirt.

Me and my favorite lake buddy last year.

And this year...she is now a little girl! I was probably saying "I could eat you up!" when this photo was taken...my favorite phrase of the past 2 years. Just this morning I started dying laughing when I started tickling Izzy and she said to me "I eat you!" which was her interpretation of something she hears me say all the time!

Granddaddy and Cici loving ipad time with Izzy in the morning. She has been super clingy to me up here and this was the only way they could coax her into bed for morning snuggles.

It quickly became apparent that Isabelle is a lake girl. She eagerly swam (with her puddle jumper) out to the float. Seen here sunbathing with Cici.

Daddy was not able to be with us the first week, but Isabelle got lots of attention from her Uncle Matthew (wearing her hat and fairy wings while chatting on her phone).

This is the little "North Cabin" (there used to be a South cabin, hence the name) where the growing Barksdale family stays. It's where I grew up staying with my family and despite the fact that mice have been known to nest inside over the winter, or that sometimes moths and even spiders like to join us in the summer, I still love it.

It's quite cozy, and although a minor tornado would easily lift us up to bring us to Oz (Izzy would probably love it and Granddaddy would be jealous), it feels safe and cozy to me, with the perfect amount of breeze coming through the screened windows. Isabelle takes her daily 3+ hour nap in the far corner.

This year has been a lot different without Brian around everyday. I had my (almost) whole family here and it felt quite strange not having my husband here to share this time with us. Chasing after a curious little 2 year old (in a somewhat dangerous place) and keeping track of my problem child, Crockett, made my first few days here exhausting. And when the family was drinking wine and having hors'doeurves on the porch every evening while I was feeding and bathing, I started to worry that maybe 3 weeks here wouldn't be all fun and relaxing. Being a 5th wheel is never all that fun, but just try it sober!

Imagine an old log house with 2 floors, 6 doors to the outdoors (opened with ease by a 2 year old), steep stairs and rocky paths everywhere. Then add an adventurous child who loves to be outside (especially when I'm in) and inside (especially when I'm out).

Last year Isabelle had no problem crawling everywhere...definitely more dirty but not quite as fast and sneaky as she is today! Today she is hopping over stones, slamming doors and attempting to walk up and down stairs alone. Yikes!

One of the many doors and rocky paths...

View of the front yard where Isabelle's beloved hammock ("haymake" as Izzy calls it) swings.

Steps to the "haymake" not exactly safe.

Needless to say it's been a different vacation. But I have been soaking up every minute with Isabelle. I know these are the last months of her life that I can focus soley on my precious firstborn and I am spoiling her rotten!

Below, that's Izzy's red popsicle in front of my face, not a red clown nose. I'm not that fun.